March 31, 2009


Immokalee workers may be denied water service

By JANINE ZEITLIN
jzeitlin@news-press.com

New rules passed in Immokalee may be depriving some illegal immigrants of a basic need: water.

Immokalee Water & Sewer District officials said they’re trying to conquer a pair of issues with the resolutions passed late last year: unpaid bills and compliance with Federal Trade Commission identity-theft prevention required by May 1.

Bonita Springs Utilities adopted similar measures, but stories of people being turned down for water haven’t surfaced.

A family with four U.S.-born children has been without water in their Immokalee home almost a month, relying on water they boil from a neighbor's hose.

Thousands of migrant workers stream into the Collier County agricultural town during harvest season. Many are here illegally and lack the valid U.S. or state-issued photo ID required. They must also show a lease in their name.

“In the first place, this is inhumane,â€